


Rumour has it

by madlysanecatlady



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Gladnis, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-15
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:06:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25906315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madlysanecatlady/pseuds/madlysanecatlady
Summary: The guards in the Citadel love gossiping. The current rumour of choice just so happens to be about Ignis and Gladio. When Cor sends them on a mission to the Vesperpool together, that rumour, among other things, is weighing on Ignis' mind.
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia/Ignis Scientia
Comments: 4
Kudos: 62





	Rumour has it

The Marshal seemed serious when he passed by Ignis in the hallway on his way back down to the guards’ training quarters. Or rather, he looked more serious than he usually did, which had Ignis rather perplexed. Last he had heard (at that morning’s briefing, actually) Daemon sightings were still infrequent enough to not warrant much action on their part yet, and supplies were still freely passing throughout the region. The Empire had been rather docile at late as well; he certainly hope _that_ hadn’t changed. His work was complex and taxing enough as it was in trying to ready a sullen teenaged prince for his royal duties – he did not need any further strategic planning to be required of him at the moment.

He was so completely engrossed in his thoughts on the matter when he realised that his feet had brought him straight to the training quarters, seemingly of their own volition. He peeked in trough the open door and smiled when his eyes fell on Gladio. Of _course_ he was here; Ignis hadn’t known him to be anywhere else when he wasn’t on active guard duty. Gladio seemed to live for the chance to help other recruits with their training; and he never turned down the chance to spend time with the Citadel’s state-of-the art weightlifting equipment either.

The smile turned to a confused frown when he finally processed that Gladio was neither training nor working, but instead engrossed in a seemingly tense conversation with Cor. Something was absolutely amiss to have Gladio looking so serious as he did. Curious, Ignis made his way over, catching the tail end of their conversation.

‘I know you’re up to the job, Gladiolus,’ Cor was saying, not noticing – or rather more likely, simply not caring about – Ignis’ approach. ‘That’s not the issue – the problem is that they’re really fussy things, Mandrakes. You’ve got to find one that’s flowering, and those things aren’t really obvious about it. You’d need an expert with you who could tell you which to go for – otherwise you might be out there for days. And I guarantee there’s far worse things living out there than Mandrakes.’

‘I think I might know an expert,’ Gladio noticed Ignis nearing them and smiled. ‘But I’m not sure he’s free enough to come with me. Maybe he can just tell me what to look for.’

Cor glanced back at Ignis, acknowledging him with the faintest of nods before turning back to Gladio with a shrug. ‘This might actually be more important than any of our duties right now. You fill in Ignis, and I’ll go check with his Majesty if that’s how he wants us to do this.’

With nary a smile or parting word, Cor swept away and out of the training room, leaving a confused Ignis looking to Gladio for answers. He frowned. ‘What’s all this about Mandrakes?’

Gladio sighed. ‘You know about that weird illness that’s been cropping up now and again outside the city? It’s been getting worse than we thought. So now the big rush is on finding a cure. If the Empire catches wind a bunch of our citizens are too weak to fight back, they’ll be sitting ducks out there. Some of the scientists in the Citadel think they might be onto something with their research into Mandrake leaves, but they think the berries will be more promising to them.’

‘Of course, good luck finding Mandrake berries at any market,’ Ignis’ frown deepened. ‘It’s one thing to pick up fallen leaves while the Mandrakes are dormant deeper into the Myrlwood. It’s another entirely to slay one who’s flowering for the berries.’

‘Exactly,’ Gladio nodded, a small smirk playing at his lips. ‘So they need someone to go all the way out there, find one, kill it, and grab its berries.’

‘By no means an easy feat,’ Ignis nodded. ‘Which makes it all the more odd that you’re smiling, Gladio.’

Gladio laughed. ‘Yeah, I know, I probably look insane. I’m just happy to know I was right. You _are_ the biggest genius I know. The second Cor said I needed an expert to come with me I knew you’d be the guy to ask. Besides, there’s no one I’d trust more to have my back than you.’

‘While I certainly don’t relish the idea of traipsing through the Vesperpool, the sentiment is appreciated,’ Ignis smiled. ‘I’m not sure I’d trust anyone else to keep you safe either. Not many of the guards are as observant as they should be. I won’t have their incompetence put you in danger.’

Gladio’s smile softened into an expression Ignis had come to see on his best friend’s face a few times but still hadn’t been quite able to place, before he laughed and tossed an airy arm around his shoulders. ‘The kid’s right in calling you a total mom, isn’t he?’

‘Well, if neither of you will be bothered to keep yourselves safe and healthy, I suppose I need to step in, don’t I?’ Ignis knocked Gladio in the side playfully with his hip.

Gladio was spared the trouble of thinking up a clever retort to that by Cor sweeping back into the training room and crossing the floor towards his office in long fluid strides. ‘Gladiolus, Ignis, my office.’

They followed dutifully, Ignis noticing a few of the guards pause in their training to stare at them as they passed, many of their faces betraying the fact that they were hoping to watch ranking members of the Crownsguard be disciplined, likely to have gossip for their friends after their training sessions were complete.

Gladio scoffed in their direction, ever the trainer at heart. ‘You aren’t going to get in any better shape by staring at us,’ he barked in their direction. ‘So get back to training or finish up. We don’t need you in here clogging up the equipment if you aren’t going to use it.’

Most of the guards looks appropriately chastised, a few looking annoyed, but all returned to their training. Ignis could still see a few of them watching from the corners of their eyes however and suppressed a chuckle. He was well used to being a subject of gossip around the Citadel. It appeared that rank and status within the Crownsguard attracted the interest of the younger or lowing ranking recruits. He supposed that was simply a phenomenon that came with the job.

They entered the Marshal’s office, Ignis snapping the door behind them to dissuade any curious eavesdropping. He sat next to Gladio in the offered chairs, crossed one leg over the other, and looked to Cor, waiting for him to speak.

‘It’s getting serious,’ Cor told them quietly. ‘We just got word of an entire farm in Cleigne shutting down because all the workers are sick. There’s going to be food shortages if we don’t figure this out fast. Gladiolus, you need to pick your team immediately and get ready to leave tomorrow morning at the latest. We need those berries.’

‘I’ve got my team,’ Gladio indicated Ignis with a nod of his head. ‘We’ll be able to travel much faster just us two. We can take my bike – less fuel stops and it’ll handle the Vesperpool terrain a bit better than any of the cars in the Citadel.’

The lines on Cor’s forehead creased. ‘Are you sure? Mandrakes are known to be violent, not to mention the aggressive Mushussu in the area. It might do you well to have a couple other guards watching your back.’

‘There’s no one who watches my back better than Ignis. Besides, having him as my expert makes it so much easier – I don’t need to drag along someone who’s got no idea how to fight and the guards to protect them.’

‘Marshal, if speed is of the essence, Gladio and I can depart this afternoon. All I need prepare is a stand-in to look after his Highness for a few days. I can devise the best course of action en route and advise Gladio when we make camp.’

Cor nodded, his jaw set. ‘Take whatever you need and do whatever you need to do. I’ll find replacement for you, Gladiolus, so don’t worry about that. This is probably the most important thing on everyone’s mind right now. We need to find a cure, and soon.’

‘Say no more, Marshal,’ Ignis stood fluidly. ‘I shall inform his Highness and my temporary replacement at once. It should take no longer than an hour.’

‘I’ll pack up all the stuff we need,’ Gladio stood as well. ‘Meet ya in the parking garage in a hour?’

Ignis nodded and exited the office, ignoring the stares of the recruits as he passed by. He was far too annoyed with himself to pay them any mind – how had he allowed himself to be so ignorant of the situation? Had he been paying more attention to reports of illness outside the city walls, he may have been in a position to advise. Perhaps the kingdom wouldn’t be in such a dire situation if he had.

He took in a deep breath and shook himself free of his self-recriminations. He did not have the time for those. There was a job that needed doing, and he needed to ensure all his other duties were at least partially attended to while he did it. While Ignis tended to err on the side of humility most times, he held no illusions that there were others in the Crown’s employ who could keep up with his duties as well as he could. He also knew that Noctis responded well to precious few members of the staff. He certainly had quite the web of arrangements to make.

His first order of business was ensuring all of the documents in his office were appropriately dealt with and delivered to the appropriate department. He knew he still had a briefing docket to review and deliver to his Majesty, which would be his topmost priority. He could only assume there were details about the current pandemic he had been so successfully unaware of within – Ignis once again mentally kicked himself for allowing himself to remain so acutely oblivious.

His office was in its usual ordered disarray. The piles of documents atop his glass desk were bordering threateningly towards precarious. He sighed. He could only imagine the backlog that would be here to greet him when he and Gladio returned. He shook his head – none of that was important now. He had preparations to make, and quickly. It would not do to keep Gladio, and frankly, the entire kingdom, waiting on him because he was more concerned with his own paperwork than the health of the Lucian citizens suffering from this largely mysterious and unknown disease.

He sank wearily into his chair and took the King’s docket from the top of one of the less precarious piles and flipped it open, sighing when he saw that the top page was indeed a briefing about the illness’ spread. He skimmed the document, pausing when he came to the paragraph outlining the researchers’ current findings. It seemed that the illness appeared to have roots in the Vesperpool’s flora, particularly in the fungi growing there. He made a mental note to advise Gladio – it would be less than ideal for either of them to fall ill in the midst of their mission. Any missions aside, Ignis would hate to see Gladio ill at all. From the briefing document, he could tell the illness was serious. He couldn’t bear the thought of his best friend falling so ill. The illness had a rather high mortality rate – the thought of his friend no longer being at his side simply did not compute in his brain. He resolved that they would be doubly, even triply careful as they made their way to the Myrlwood.

He flipped through the remaining documents, pausing to add his own notes or highlights on sticky notes where needed and flipped the folder closed with a sigh. That was the more major of his remaining tasks completed. He turned his attention to his laptop and, with difficulty, ignored the thirty-two emails he had received since he had last checked. He simply added an out-of-office message and cancelled meetings he had with other staff members. He then sent the few remaining meetings to advisors he knew would be well-versed enough in the subject to fill in effectively for him. He closed the laptop and sighed. The most difficult task remained – finding a retainer to agree to fill in for him in looking after the unruly prince.

He was going over his mental list of candidates when one of his preferred ones appeared in his doorway, looking timid. She was a tall and slender woman with mousy hair and an even mousier face. Her thin pointed nose curled upwards ever so slightly, giving her a rather jaunty looking air if you ignored the near-constant expression of worry at her brow and thin mouth. She had been the late queen’s chamberlain, and was now one of the king’s more dedicated retainers. If anyone would put the high level of care looking after the prince required, it would be her.

‘What a coincidence, Miss Adelaide,’ Ignis beckoned her inside. ‘I was just thinking about where you might be.’

‘I heard from his Majesty and the Marshal that you’ll be accompanying his Highness’ Shield out of the city for at least a few days,’ she said, leaning against one of Ignis’ visitor’s chairs but remaining on her feet. ‘I assume you’ll be needing someone to look after your duties for his Highness, and I came to offer my services should you want them.’

Ignis smiled, relieved that he would not need to negotiate or plead with anyone to have the prince looked after. Word travelled fast among Citadel staff; and many retainers had seen the prince behaving, well, in his usual manner since his childhood. Not many of the retainers on staff would willingly take on the duties of ensuring Noctis kept up to date on school, the inner workings of the government, as well as ensuring he was eating and sleeping properly. It felt like a full-time job on its own most days, Ignis felt his already high respect for Adelaide rise.

‘I’m guessing from the smile that you’re shocked anyone would agree to take on the job without you pleading,’ she chuckled. ‘His Majesty suggested I offer so you have less to worry about. From what I hear, you and Lord Amicitia are going on a very dangerous journey. You need to know everything is taken care of here so you can concentrate on keeping yourself safe. I think his highness would be inconsolable if anything were to happen to you. As would many of us.’

Ignis was taken aback by the sincerity of her tone. While he knew the work he did was important, he hadn’t realised other people noticed. He certainly hadn’t known anyone appreciated it so much as that. He felt a rare warmth at the thought; it was a nice feeling, really.

‘I can take care of getting the advisors on task too. Oh, and I’ll bring that briefing over to his Majesty,’ Adelaide smiled. ‘You need only worry getting yourself prepared. Stay safe, Ignis. We need you around here.’

‘Thank you, Adelaide,’ Ignis was once again thrown. It was rare he was on the receiving end of such a caring tone. Few people, well, generally only Gladio really, ever seemed to care about whether or not Ignis was taking proper care of himself. It was a strange, alien thing to him. He appreciated it all the same. ‘I believe his Highness will be in the Citadel shortly,’ he told her. ‘It’s a Wednesday, today is usually the day he comes to check in with his Majesty. I shall endeavor to inform him of my absence to hopefully reduce the amount of attitude he’ll give you.’

‘The effort’s appreciated but don’t go out of your way,’ Adelaide smiled. ‘I’m sure I can handle a teenaged tantrum or two.’

‘It’s more likely general apathy you’ll need to contend with,’ Ignis smiled wryly. He pulled out his mobile. ‘I’ll email you a list of the subjects he’s had today in school – it’s likely he has homework to do for each of them. I wish you luck in persuading him to actually complete it.’

She gave an appreciative chuckle and left him to finish up his preparations. Ignis let out a relieved sigh and swept a cursory glance across the remaining piles of documents on his desk. None of them seemed particularly urgent; they could wait until he returned. He smiled. He would likely be able to assist Gladio in packing their supplies. He disliked the thought of Gladio needing to do all the heavy lifting in their preparations because of Ignis’ focus on bureaucracy. He turned his back on the papers, ready to go.

He decided to cut through the courtyard to get to the parking garage, rather than take the meandering route through the Citadel’s many winding corridors. He decided he might regret that decision the moment whispered gossip reached his hears from behind a hedge leading into the ornamental rose garden where many guards liked to spend their breaks.

‘Are you serious?’ a voice Ignis recognised as belonging to one of the guards generally stationed at the Citadel’s front gates in the morning sounded incredulous.

‘Yeah! I was totally there! I saw Cor order them into his office and Amicitia did not look happy,’ a voice Ignis placed after a moment as belonging to a new recruit answered. He paused next to the hedges. He had a feeling he knew just who they were gossiping about.

‘What in the hell could he be discipling either of them for? Amicitia’s the poster child for always training and Scientia’s not really his problem, is he?’ the first voice wondered aloud. Ignis rolled his eyes. _Of course_ the stress and annoyance radiating off Cor piqued the recruits’ interest, and of course they jumped to conclusions immediately. He was surprised there weren’t more ridiculous rumours floating about the Citadel with how the guards liked to gossip.

‘What the hell else could it be?’ the second voice sounded as though the recruit were holding back laughter. ‘It’s obviously about them fraternising, isn’t it? You’re the one who told me they’re probably fucking.’

Ignis felt his mouth drop open, his cheeks burning and more than likely bright red. He stopped himself from simply marching around the hedge and demanding answers, deciding he really did not have the mental wherewithal to have any conversation of the sort with these guards.

‘I mean yeah, they must be,’ the first voice let out a chuckle. ‘Have you _seen_ the way they look at each other? There’s only so much undressing with your eyes you can do before it becomes blatantly obvious. Remember that time Scientia was teaching us that class on evasive manoeuvres and Amicitia was staring at him like he was one of the Astrals? Come on, how obvious can you be? It’s like they’re not even trying to hide it. No wonder the Marshal’s done with their shit. How’re you supposed to fight if all you’re doing is staring at some choice ass?’

Ignis had heard quite enough for his liking. He let out a pointed cough, drawing the muted snickers of the guards to an abrupt halt. ‘Perhaps you should return to your posts or training rather than spreading unfounded rumours.’

Ignis did not wait for a reply or for the guards to show themselves, he could certainly imagine the looks on their faces. The mental image did at least bring a satisfied smirk to his face, albeit momentarily. That was a completely tasteless rumour. While he was largely unconcerned about the rumour making its way up to the Marshal – Monica and Dustin had been the subject of such rumours long before he had even been a recruit and the Marshal had not once questioned their ability to remain professional – and, well, alright, he was perhaps slightly concerned about Gladio finding out and tearing into any and all Citadel staff spreading the rumours, he was mostly annoyed by the slight grains of truth in it.

While he certainly was not visibly pining after Gladio in training sessions, despite the distasteful rumours’ assertion otherwise, the pining happened all the same inwardly. He sighed as he walked, looking up at the crystal blue sky. He had probably loved Gladio from the moment his young teenaged self had become aware of the notion. He couldn’t think of a single facet of Gladio, physical or otherwise, that wasn’t completely worthy of all the love and devotion in the world. He figured it would have been a complete losing battle to try and _not_ fall for the handsome young Shield. The problem lay with Gladio, or rather, it lay with the fact that Gladio could never, ever know how Ignis felt. The very thought chilled Ignis to the core. He could not bear the thought of their friendship changing because Ignis had such little control over his own heart he couldn’t keep it in check. Having Gladio in his life was far more important than the microscopic possibility of Gladio returning the feeling.

Gladio was attempting to fold the tent canvas in a way that it would fit into the compartment on the back of his bike. Wordlessly, Ignis moved to help, Gladio seamlessly following his lead. They moved together in the synchronic harmony that came with so many years of close friendship and training. Ignis felt the rather familiar sensation of his heart practically singing in the proximity to Gladio. He finished up the intricate fold and helped Gladio stuff it into the compartment overtop the poles.

‘You know, it makes far much more sense to store supplies in the aether, does it not?’ Ignis raised an eyebrow. ‘It’s literally travelling light.’

Gladio snorted. ‘I know, but there’s some things I just don’t trust to not lose, ya know? The tent’s pretty important. I can find us food no problem, but shelter’s gonna be important, especially in Cleigne. It’s more rainy than not there.’ 

‘Fair enough,’ Ignis shrugged. ‘Is there much else to prepare?’

Gladio shook his head. ‘I’ve got all the basic supplies together. Weapons are all in order. I’m ready to go if you are,’ he held out a second helmet to Ignis.

‘Shall we, then?’ Ignis pulled it on, knowing full well the mess his hair was going to be the moment he pulled it off again, and thankful Gladio would be the only one to see it. He waited for Gladio to mount the bike before sliding into the seat behind him, scooting close and doing his best to ignore the jolt in his stomach at that. He gave a hard swallow, pushing his mind to concentrate on coming up with helpful tactics for their task in the Myrlwood rather than the feel of Gladio’s muscular form against him.

Gladio kicked the bike into life and peeled out of the garage. Ignis was well-used to Gladio’s rather reckless-seeming driving habits (he made a mental note to never let Gladio drive any of the Crown-owned cars), but his attention was nonetheless jolted back to the Gladio’s back pressed against him at the sudden speed change. He sighed inwardly. This was going to be a long journey if he couldn’t keep his mind focused on the task at hand.

They passed through the guard checkpoint at the entrance gate and Ignis noticed an intrigued expression on one of the guards’ faces and suppressed a huff of annoyance. _Wonderful_. He looked forward to the plethora of new rumours he was no doubt going to return home to.

* * *

The Leiden countryside became somewhat boring to watch pass by after a time. The desert was rather lacking in notable landmarks, and Ignis was no geologist – the constant passing of rock after rock was dull at best. He was beyond pleased to be passing into Duscae as the late afternoon sun threatened to dip under the welcomed sight of a treeline.

Ignis’ back was rather stiff when Gladio killed the motorbike’s engine beside the faint glow of a haven. He slid off gracefully, giving his back and legs a grateful stretch before following Gladio up the incline of the large flat rock that made up the haven.

‘Feeling stiff?’ Gladio asked, looking up at Ignis while he fussed about with making a fire.

‘I’m not accustomed to long hours on the back of a motorbike, I’m afraid,’ Ignis got started on the poles for the tent. ‘I’m sure I’ll grow more used to it tomorrow.’

‘I’ll trade you a massage for dinner,’ Gladio, happy with the small fire he’d started, came to Ignis’ side to help with the tent.

Ignis felt his cheeks go a little pink at the thought. He gave a chuckle that he hoped sounded airy and shook his head. ‘Dinners from me are always free, Gladio. You should know that by now.’

‘The offer stands,’ Gladio clapped him on the shoulder. He looked up at him, his expression turning more serious. ‘Hey, what’s bugging you? You looked annoyed when you met me in a garage, and it still looks like something’s bugging you now. You’re not worried we’re in over our heads, are ya?’

‘I think you could bring down a swarm of Mandrakes single-handedly, Gladio,’ Ignis rolled his eyes. ‘I’ve no doubt in my mind we’ll be perfectly fine. Besides, I’ve ensured to have a store of proper curatives on hand.’

‘Always prepared,’ Gladio smiled. ‘Then what’s up? One of the younger guards get on your nerves again? I know they can be assholes.’

Ignis sighed heavily, figuring there wasn’t much point in keeping it from him – Gladio was sure to hear the rumours at some point or another. He supposed it was safer to tell him out here, far away from bystanders, and where Gladio couldn’t unleash a flurry of angry reprimands upon the recruits. He gathered his thoughts, helping Gladio put the canvas of the tent over the poles and secure it before straightening up with another weary sigh.

‘I’m sure you noticed how the Marshal’s demeanor this morning attracted the attention of the training recruits,’ Ignis shrugged. ‘It appears we’re the subject of the latest guard gossip – apparently we’ve been harshly reprimanded.’

‘Oh, I can only imagine what sort of bullshit they think we’d get a dressing down for,’ Gladio eyed him closely, chuckling when he noticed the darkening of Ignis’ expression. ‘Ahh, they’re on about you and me fucking like rabbits again, aren’t they?’

‘You’ve heard that rumour?’ Ignis was surprised. He was certain Gladio would have come to complain to him about it the second he’d heard it. Gladio was never quiet about how much the guards’ gossip habits annoyed him.

‘Yeah, Nyx Ulric of all people told me,’ Gladio chuckled, fetching some ingredients he knew Ignis could use from their stores to cook a simple dinner. ‘Said he heard the guards at the gate whispering about it. Then the asshole asks me if it’s true so he can report back. I told him as if I’d be so lucky.’

Ignis really wasn’t sure what to say. Gladio’s answer was confusing to say the least. He accepted the ingredients silently, working out the most efficient and nutritious recipe to make with the few bits of his brain that weren’t preoccupied with analysing and over-analysing Gladio’s statement.

‘Don’t let those dickheads get to ya,’ Gladio clapped him on the back. ‘They’ll find something new to gossip about by the time we get back. Don’t think they’ve ever been right about anything either, ‘cept maybe Monic and Dustin – lucky guy.’

‘I wasn’t aware you were so privy to much of the guards’ musings,’ Ignis set up his trusty frying pan over the campfire and set about making some mushroom skewers. ‘You usually complain that they spend more time whispering to one another than they do training.’

‘Nyx and my dad get a kick out of listening in when they don’t know they’re being overheard,’ Gladio shrugged. ‘Dad _really_ enjoyed that rumour that I was a top secret cyborg project instead of his kid a few years back. Since then he’s been telling me about all the fun ridiculous things those idiot comes up with. Nyx really only tells me the ones about me – says he likes to see how pissy I get when I hear them.’

‘And I suppose it never occurred to you that the other subject of rumour would like to know?’ Ignis didn’t like how hollow his voice sounded, he should honestly be pleased that Gladio knew the rumour and wasn’t bothered by it, but was somewhat hurt that Gladio hadn’t seen fit to warn him.

‘I really didn’t mean to upset you, Iggy,’ Gladio tossed an arm around Ignis’ narrow shoulders and squeezed. ‘Just the opposite, actually. I figured you’d be upset hearing it, so I’d hoped you _wouldn’t_. I guess in hindsight, I probably should’ve warned you. But to be honest, I was being a bit selfish. I know you get over-analytical and self-conscious when you know people are watching you. I didn’t want you to start distancing yourself or something to try and quell the rumours. They go away pretty fast and they don’t really do any harm. Cor knows us, he knows we’re professional. He probably wouldn’t give a shit if we _were_ a thing. He knows we can get the job done, no matter what it is. I mean, he sent us out on this mission, didn’t he? The only harm the dumb guard gossip does is piss off the people they’re whispering about. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I just didn’t want to see you upset.’

Ignis nodded, giving a hard swallow, and mulling over Gladio’s words. His heart gave a few hopeful flutters at the casual statements Gladio made about a potential relationship between them before Ignis clamped down hard on that, giving his idiotic mind a thorough shake back to its senses. ‘I understand, Gladio. To be honest, I’d been worried to tell you for largely the same reasons. Hypocritical, I know.’

Gladio shrugged, fetching a pair of camp chairs and setting them up next to the fire, sinking down into one with a heavy grunt of appreciation. ‘I get it. It sucks to see your best friend upset. I know I hate it.’

Ignis handed him a pair of mushroom skewers with a smile, sitting down with his own. ‘We’d best get to bed early so we can leave at the crack of dawn. Best make use of all the daylight we can. It won’t do to get stuck away from a haven after dark.’

‘What, you _don’t_ want to go head to head with a buncha daemons?’ Gladio laughed around a mouthful. ‘Might keep things interesting to run into a couple tonberrys or something.’

‘I can assure you, things are hardly dull when you’re around, Gladio,’ Ignis rolled his eyes. ‘We needn’t tempt fate for a cheap thrill.’

‘You keep my life full of spice too, Iggy,’ Gladio winked, finishing off his skewers. ‘Literally, actually.’

Ignis chuckled appreciatively and finished off his own dinner. He stretched in his seat and let out a sigh. ‘Alright, I’ll get this all cleaned up. You can head to bed, Gladio.’

‘Not a chance I’m having you clean up by yourself, Iggy,’ Gladio heaved his massive form out of the chair. ‘You did the cooking, let me do the cleaning.’

‘You’re the one driving,’ Ignis shook his head. ‘It makes sense to have you more well-rested. I won’t have you exhaustedly crashing us. Now go on, this won’t take long at all, anyway.’

Gladio looked ready to argue, but deflated under Ignis’ stern glare. He nodded and dutifully ducked into the tent, leaving Ignis to clean out the pan. He gave himself a physical shake. This afternoon had been oddly jarring to his usually carefully controlled emotions. He was grateful for the few moments alone to get himself back in order.

He wiped out the pan with a measured breath. He really needed to get his runaway heart in check. Visions of all that could happen between them on this journey alone were distracting at best. Unbidden daydreams were not conducive to maintaining the status quo of their friendship. Ignis took a few calming breaths. He had maintained his composure without fail for years – he was not about to let a silly rumour from the guards put a crack in the careful veneer he kept in place.

He ducked into the tent, hoping a good night’s sleep would put an end to his heart’s useless pining. Gladio was already asleep, sprawled halfway out of his sleeping bag, revealing the muscles Ignis would easily believe were hand-sculpted by the gods themselves. Ignis had been grateful for the leather jacket affording a slight cushion, allowing him to better ignore the feeling of Gladio’s back pressed against his front. Seeing the form he so desired out on full display caught Ignis off guard and formed a tight lump in his throat. He gulped it down and averted his gaze. It would not do to work himself up so. He needed to get ahold of himself and calm down. A good night’s sleep was imperative. Forcing himself to ignore the mass that was Gladio beside him, Ignis slid into his sleeping bag and curled in on himself, willing his mind blank and eventually succeeded in lulling himself to sleep.

* * *

Gladio was incredibly strong. There had never been a doubt in Ignis’ mind that he was, but there was still something so magical about the way Gladio could simply sweep him off his feet and cart him off to his bed. There was something so sensuous about the way the muscles in Gladio’s massive arms moved as he carried him; Ignis reached out to run his hand up a thick bicep, smiling.

‘My, aren’t you strong?’

‘You love it,’ Gladio’s voice was gruff and husky. He looked down at Ignis with a fiery hunger in his eyes that Ignis loved to see. He wound his arm’s around Gladio’s neck and pulled their faces level to kiss him.

Gladio made a contented grunt in his throat before pulling away with a grin. Without warning, he tossed Ignis down onto the bed, barely waiting for him to bounce into position before lowering himself over him, claiming Ignis’ lips hungrily.

Ignis allowed Gladio’s tongue entry, allowing him to explore there while he allowed his own hands to wander the corded planes of Gladio’s back, feeling the muscles shift and roll under his fingertips as Gladio moved. It all felt so lovely and perfect, and Ignis wanted to lose himself in the sensation, but something felt _off_.

Gladio pulled away, looking concerned under the sheen of lust on his face. ‘What’s up, Iggy? Not enjoying yourself?’

‘No, I love this,’ Ignis frowned. ‘But it’s so odd. This almost feels like a dream. Aren’t we supposed to be fetching Mandrake berries for the Marshal?’

‘This is a dream,’ Gladio told him matter-of-factly. ‘You’re all crazy pent up, so you’re dreaming this all up to let off some steam. I say just go with it.’

The rational bit of Ignis’ mind told him this was likely not a good idea. The rest of his brain told that bit to shut up. He shrugged, reaching up to pull his dream Gladio back into a kiss. The manifestation of his subconscious was correct – he needed to let off some steam.

* * *

Ignis woke as the dim light of the sun rising began to filter through the canvas of the tent. He groaned and stretched. He hadn’t been ready to awaken yet; his dream had been so wonderful he wasn’t sure he would have ever wanted it to end. He sighed. He hoped that allowing his imagination free reign in his dreams would leave him free to maintain a cool head during the day.

He extricated himself from his sleeping bag and frowned when his eyes fell on Gladio’s empty one. He knew Gladio was an early riser, but really didn’t think he was _that_ early a riser. Shrugging, he climbed out of the tent, smiling back at Gladio who looked up from the book he was reading to smile at him. ‘Morning, Gladio. Sleep well?’

‘Pretty damn good. I love camping,’ Gladio marked his page and snapped the book shut. ‘I made coffee, I know how you love the stuff. And don’t worry about food. Even I can figure out toast over the fire,’ he indicated a stack of bread next to the fire.

‘You could have woken me, I don’t mind at all,’ Ignis accepted the cup of coffee offered to him and got started on making himself some toast.

‘Nah, you looked like you were having a good dream, so I figured I’d let you finish it,’ Gladio shrugged. He chuckled at Ignis’ carefully confused expression. ‘You were smiling and muttering to yourself about how lovely everything was. I bet you were baking.’

Ignis swallowed down the bundle of nerves in his throat and force out what he hoped sounded like an airy laugh. ‘You know, I can’t really remember.’

‘Shame, I’d have loved to hear all about it,’ Gladio stood and started disassembling the tent. ‘And of course, you know I’m always here to taste test whatever recipes you come up with for ya.’

‘Oh yes, that I do know,’ Ignis smiled around his piece of toast. He was pleased that he seemed so much calmer this morning – it seemed that the dream really _had_ allowed Ignis to _let off some steam_ and get his mind more in order. He was happy to get back to the easy flow of their friendship.

* * *

The journey that morning had been largely uneventful until the rain started as they came nearer to Cleigne around midday. The skies truly opened up a few hours later, dousing them in a veritable downpour.

‘The downside of the bike,’ Gladio shouted over the sound of the engine. ‘There’s a haven not too far from here. We can hide out in the tent and hopefully this’ll clear up by morning.’

‘Indeed,’ Ignis agreed, honestly grateful the rain had become too difficult to ride in – he was beginning to shiver. 

Gladio pulled the bike over next to a roadside haven. They hurriedly pitched the tent and Gladio set up a drying rack under a heavy-duty tarp for their clothes. Gladio wasted no time in shucking off his wet clothes, but noticed Ignis’ hesitation. ‘C’mon Iggy, you can’t sit around in those wet clothes. In this weather, you’ll freeze to death.’

Ignis had to concede that point and, doing his best not to stare at Gladio’s enticingly bare body, removed his own clothes, involuntarily shivering under the onslaught of the cold rain.

‘Alright let’s get dried off and warmed up,’ Gladio tossed a casual arm around Ignis’ shivering shoulders and used it to lead him into the tent. He handed Ignis a towel with a thoughtful expression on his face.

‘What’s on your mind, Gladio?’ Ignis toweled off, still shivering.

‘Shit, you’re freezing,’ Gladio ducked to find him a blanket. He wrapped it around Ignis’ shoulders, rubbing his arms. ‘Here’s hoping this lets up by evening so I can start us a fire. Otherwise we might have to do some jumping jacks or something in here.’

Ignis snorted. ‘I will be fine in a minute, Gladio, not to worry. I simply don’t take very well to wetness.’

‘Well, you don’t have much insulation on ya,’ Gladio looked him over, that thoughtful expression back on his face. ‘But you’re not as skinny as you look y’now. No, I’m not calling you fat – I just, it’s all muscle. I mean, it’s not surprising with how strong you are, but people probably underestimate you all the time, huh?’

‘On occasion, I suppose,’ Ignis felt his cheeks going red hot under Gladio’s gaze. He supposed there was not much danger in him freezing to death like this.

‘Sorry, Iggy, I know you hate feeling all… objectified like that,’ Gladio frowned. He swallowed and gave a harsh laugh. ‘Don’t worry, I know you’re way more than your looks.’

Ignis blinked. He really did not know how to respond to that. He too, swallowed before letting out a forced chuckle. ‘I should certainly hope,’ he finally settled on moments later.

‘Alright, let’s figure out if the weather’s gonna cooperate,’ Gladio pulled out his phone to check his weather app before groaning. ‘Ugh, it’s gonna rain till after midnight.’

‘Well, I suppose we’ll have to find some way to not freeze to death in the meantime,’ Ignis looked around the tent. He supposed their lantern might provide _some_ warmth, but it was a mere pittance compared to a fire.

‘No worries, I got it,’ Gladio was already fumbling with their sleeping bags, unzipping them and then attaching them together. ‘Survival 101, Iggy. Think back to training.’

‘Oh, of course, body heat,’ Ignis felt stupid for not having thought of it. Of course, as the reality of the situation dawned on him, it became clear _why_ he hadn’t thought of it. He gulped inwardly. The idea of sharing a sleeping bag with a largely unclothed Gladio was both enticing and completely terrifying. Ignis only hoped he had it in him to remain as unaffected as possible, lest Gladio, ever the adept reader of Ignis’ emotions, see through him.

‘Hey, I know I’m no Cor or anything, but I think you can stomach a night cuddling with your best friend, right?’ Gladio grinned mischievously, once again making Ignis regret the one night many years ago he had admitted to Gladio how attractive he’d found the Marshal the first time they’d met. Of course, Ignis had been a young teen then – every remotely handsome man piqued his interest.

Ignis managed a genuine chuckle at that. The familiar teasing always put him at ease. It was one of the things he loved most about Gladio – everything was always so easy with him. Even sliding into a shared sleeping bag. Well, perhaps that would be easier if Ignis weren’t so absolutely terrified Gladio might see a shred of the longing Ignis felt flash across his face. He swallowed, setting his jaw. He was being ridiculous. It was one simple night. He could survive that. More than, really, he amended as the heat Gladio seemed to constantly radiate filled their shared sleeping bag and enveloped him like a warm hug.

‘You’re not shivering anymore, that’s a good sign,’ Gladio had taken out his book at some point while Ignis had been preoccupied in freaking himself out. Ignis thanked the gods for the distraction it offered. If Gladio were concentrating on his book, it meant he didn’t have the focus to look too closely at Ignis. And if he didn’t look too closely, there was simply no way he could ever see any of the feelings reeling around in both Ignis’ heart and brain.

‘Hey? You ok, Iggy? You look kinda spacey,’ Gladio’s brow was furrowed and his attention, worryingly, was now trained on Ignis.

Ignis forced a smile. ‘Yes, sorry, I’m fine.’

‘You don’t do well in the cold, huh?’ Gladio laughed, thankfully returning his attention to his book. ‘Hopefully my space heater self will help out with that. Try to get some rest. We’ll have to make up for lost time tomorrow.’

‘Indeed,’ Ignis pulled out his phone, rolling his eyes at the twelve texts from Noctis. ‘The sooner we find those berries, the sooner I can go rescue his highness from drowning in his schoolwork, it seems.’

‘You’re way too smart for the rest of us, Iggy,’ Gladio told him absently, clearly absorbed in his book. ‘And you’re too damn easy on the kid. If he’s ever gonna be king, you need to let him flail a bit in the deep end on his own every once in a while.’

‘I’m certain he’ll get the hang of it all eventually,’ Ignis shrugged, stowing his phone and deciding Gladio was right in telling him to get some rest. He closed his eyes, snuggling into the soft fleece of the interior of the sleeping bag, hoping sleep would offer him some reprieve.

* * *

‘This is nice,’ Gladio commented, snaking a strong arm around Ignis’ waist. ‘You, me, the sun. I could get used to this.’

They were, for whatever reason, on the shores of the Leiden coast, the Galdin resort in easy view from their spot on the sandy beach. Ignis had at least been prepared this time, knowing full well this was yet another dream.

‘It is,’ he answered finally, resting his head on Gladio’s shoulder.

‘Damn well better be, it’s our honeymoon, after all,’ Gladio chuckled, kissing Ignis’ forehead. He brought the hand not currently occupied with caressing Ignis’ side up to Ignis’ cheek, turning his face towards him. ‘I love you, you know.’

‘I really wish you did,’ Ignis said before Gladio leaned in to kiss him. He was sure the kiss would be lovely, but dreams offered very little in the way of physical sensation. The whole thing left Ignis feeling rather empty, if he were being honest.

‘You know, you _could_ do something about it,’ Gladio said, pulling away to look at him seriously. ‘Sometimes you gotta do some scary shit to be happy in life, y’know?’

‘The thought of losing you is simply too terrifying for words,’ Ignis shook his head. ‘I won’t risk our friendship. Having you in my life is so much more important to me than having you in my bed.’

‘It’d be more than in your bed, wouldn’t it?’ his mind really had done wonders in conjuring up a perfect replica of Gladio, Ignis noted wryly. He certainly had spent long enough analysing him, hadn’t he?

‘For certain, that would be the dream,’ Ignis sighed. ‘But that’s just it, isn’t it? A dream. Like this one.’

‘Doesn’t have to be.’

* * *

Ignis was jolted awake by a crashing sound and an otherworldly shriek from the distance. He made to sit up, but a rather heavy weight was thrown across his torso. He squinted down in the darkness, spying one of Gladio’s massive arms thrown casually across his chest. He turned his face, coming face to face with Gladio. He gulped. This was rather unexpected.

Gladio’s face twitched and his eyes opened. He blinked a few times, looking confused for a moment before abashedly withdrawing his arm. ‘Sorry Iggy,’ he said, his voice hoarse. ‘Guess I found you cuddly.’

‘You must’ve been seeking warmth in your sleep,’ Ignis shrugged before another shriek pierced through the night. ‘Daemons,’ he frowned. ‘Arachne, from the sounds of it. Horrifying creatures.’

‘They don’t sound close, and they can’t come near the haven at least,’ Gladio stretched with a weary sigh, awakening his phone to check the time. ‘Bastards, waking me up at midnight.’

‘Well, I’m not entirely sure daemons have parents to speak of, so I’m not altogether sure that’s an apt description,’ Ignis laughed at the roll of Gladio’s eyes before a rather nasty shiver made its way from his head to his toes. It appeared that he had gotten rather used to Gladio’s proximity in his sleep and was now feeling a chill. What a long and miserable night this was going to be.

‘Come here you,’ Gladio shifted closer, tossing his arm back over Ignis’ body. ‘You’re freezing! Do you store any body heat at all?’

‘I suppose I’ve spent to so long around you that my body has decided it needn’t produce any warmth of its own,’ Ignis was grateful for the dark, he was certain his entire face was beet red.

‘Glad I’m here, then,’ Gladio’s voice sounded close to sleep. His arm tightened rather pleasantly around Ignis before he felt Gladio’s face burrowing into his shoulder. He stifled a gasp. Gladio was oddly, well, _cuddly_ for lack of a better term, in his sleep it seemed.

It felt entirely different from his dreams. It was real, for one thing. But the sensations were all present and clear. Gladio had a number of callouses on his hand, they tickled slightly as the large hand splayed across his side, holding him against Gladio’s chest like he would a lover. Ignis gulped. Perhaps this was slightly _too_ real. His feelings would likely get away from him if he thought about this much more. He forced his eyes closed, his tiredness doing its part to help his mind away from his current situation. With no more shrieks from the faraway daemons, Ignis was finally able to fall back asleep.

* * *

‘You’re kinda like having my own life-size teddy bear,’ Gladio said by way of greeting when Ignis opened his eyes to the first drops of morning light. Gladio’s face was inches from his own and Ignis gulped, feeling his entire face go red. If Gladio noticed, he said nothing. Instead he pulled away and stretched. Ignis felt the temperature shift immediately.

‘Sounds like the rain’s let up,’ Ignis said after a clearing of his throat.

‘Yeah,’ Gladio slid out of the sleeping bag. ‘We should have clear skies for the day. We should make it to the Vesperpool today.’

‘That’s a relief,’ Ignis also extricated himself from the warm sleeping bag and unzipped them, returning them to their original state before folding them away into the aether.

‘Getting tired of just sitting on the bike?’ Gladio chuckled, leading the way out of the tent.

‘Anxious to complete the mission,’ Ignis shrugged, following. He made a beeline for their clothes, pleased that the tarp had allowed them to dry. ‘Alright, you disassemble the tent, I shall endeavour to make us something to eat.’

‘Great, I’m starving,’ Gladio seemed to eschew the idea of clothes and was already started on the tent. Ignis sighed and averted his gaze. How could a man as beautifully attractive as Gladio be so unaware of the effect he had on the people around him?

Ignis decided on omelettes, fussing with the fire first, pleased that Gladio’s teachings on proper fire starting techniques had remained firmly cemented in his memory. Of course, most things Gladio were firmly cemented in Ignis’ mind – he was not exactly shocked.

The omelettes came together rather quickly. Gladio was still fussing with the tent, so Ignis took the time to make some coffee, if only for something to do other than stare at Gladio.

Gladio finally made his way over, accepting his omelette with a grin. ‘Thanks Iggy, smells amazing.’

‘Hopefully this makes up for a mediocre dinner,’ Ignis chuckled. He didn’t _dislike_ protein bars, really, but they were certainly not an ideal replacement for a well-cooked meal.

‘Anything you cook is amazing, so it will,’ Gladio dug in, making a contented noise that had a warmth blossoming in Ignis’ chest. He loved cooking for others, and seeing Gladio enjoying his food warmed Ignis to his core.

Mounting the bike behind Gladio and sitting flush against him was starting to feel less awkward for Ignis. It helped that Gladio couldn’t see him while he was sitting behind him, so he could simply relax, rather than constantly hope his feelings weren’t showing in his expression.

The trees glimmering in the sunlight, the droplets of water from the night’s rain evaporating into a fine mist was a soothing sight. Ignis had to concentrate on not allowing himself to be lulled into a doze as they motored through Cleigne towards the Vesperpool.

Gladio pulled into Meldacio just before midday. Ignis slid off the bike gratefully, taking a moment to stretch while Gladio refuelled. ‘I think I shall take a look at the shop and see if there are any special curatives available.’

‘Good idea,’ Gladio nodded. ‘I’ll go chat with the local hunters – see if they got any info. Let’s meet back at, well, it’s not a restaurant, but I’m sure they can rustle up some lunch.’

Ignis nodded and headed up the weathered wooden steps into the small hunter supply shop, where he was greeted warmly by the shopkeeper, a girl far too young to be a hunter in Ignis’ opinion.

‘Lookin’ for anything in particular?’ she asked brightly, coming around the counter. ‘I definitely recommend an antidote or two if you’re heading into the Vesperpool. The Mushussu at this time of year are all riled up and ready to attack anything and everything, and those fangs of theirs pack a helluva punch. You don’t wanna get stuck out there poisoned. That place is no joke.’

‘It truly isn’t,’ Ignis shook his head, grabbing a few antidotes, just in case. ‘We’re heading into the Myrlwood, actually. So I’m afraid our risk of encounter is rather higher than I’d like.’

‘Look dude, I don’t recognise you, so I know you’re no hunter,’ the girl’s tone turned abruptly serious. ‘I know the myrltrout is delicious, but is it _really_ worth it?’

Ignis chuckled. ‘The warnings are appreciated, but you needn’t worry. We can more than take care of ourselves. He looked out the shop’s tiny window, seeing Gladio there, chatting merrily with a hunter.

The girl followed his gaze. ‘Shit, _that’s_ who you’re going with? Damn, he is hot, you lucky bastard.’

Ignis’ cheeks pinked delicately as he took out the gil needed to pay for the antidotes. ‘He’s one of the finer – ah – specimens in the Crownsguard for certain.’

‘Crownsguard, huh? What kinda business does the capital city have in the Myrlwood?’ the girl handed him his change. ‘I don’t think they’d send you all the way here for fun.’

‘Well, we’re certainly hoping it’s not a waste of time,’ Ignis stored the antidotes. ‘Thank you.’

‘Thanks back at ya,’ she smiled. ‘Good luck out there.’

Ignis nodded solemnly, hoping the luck would not be needed. He exited the shop, making a beeline for Gladio, who was sitting in a troublingly rickety looking plastic chair, a pair of sandwiches in front of him.

‘Find anything useful?’ Gladio pushed a sandwich towards him as Ignis sat down across from him.

‘Antidotes,’ Ignis shrugged. ‘It appears the Mushussu are rather rowdy as of late.’

‘Better to have it and not need it, I guess,’ Gladio got started on his sandwich.

Ignis made a noise of assent and bit into his own, smiling at the taste of cockatrice meat and mustard. It seemed as though Gladio had taken note of some of his favourites.

‘Glad you like it,’ Gladio appeared to be watching him as they ate. ‘I know you mentioned it’s one of your favourites in a sandwich.’

‘I’m surprised you remember.’

‘’Course I do, Iggy,’ Gladio’s expression went soft. ‘You spend so much time caring for me, the least I can do it return the favour.’

Ignis swallowed hard, rather hurting his throat on the way down. The way Gladio was looking at him made his heart flutter dangerously in his chest. He tore his eyes away and looked down at the remainder of his lunch, lest his heart get away from him and start trying to convince him there was hope of Gladio returning his feelings.

‘So there’s a haven just inside the Myrlwood apparently,’ Gladio said after a few minutes of silent chewing. ‘That’ll be a good spot to set up camp. Apparently there’s plenty of fish on the way, and right next to the haven if you’ve got a hankering for a fresh meal I think we can figure that out. I know there’s not too many things better than a fresh fish to cook with.’

‘Wonderful,’ Ignis’ smile was bright. While the chore of cleaning the fish was far from enjoyable, Gladio was right in saying there were few things more enjoyable to cook. Myrltrout was a true delicacy, even shipped across the kingdom. He could only imagine just how wonderful a fresh one would taste.

‘We can bag us the Mandrake in the morning, then start heading back,’ Gladio finished up his sandwich and stretched his back. ‘Hopefully they’re not too hard to kill.’

‘Well, they do tend to only come out in the late morning towards noon,’ Ignis frowned. ‘They prefer to stay hidden until the sun is high enough to shine down onto them in the depth of the woods.’

‘Hm, maybe we can sleep in a bit then,’ Gladio shrugged. ‘That’ll be nice. Well, if you even sleep more than an hour a night.’

Ignis chuckled. ‘I shall try.’

‘Alright,’ Gladio said once Ignis finished his lunch, hauling himself to his feet. ‘Man I hate those chairs.’

‘Hm, they certainly aren’t made for your size, are they?’ Ignis snorted, also getting to his feet.

‘I’m always afraid I’m gonna crush ’em,’ Gladio led the way back to the motorbike. ‘Alright, we’re almost there. Man, I can’t wait to get my hands on those berries so we can get the hell outta here. I don’t mind a bit of wetness, but this is a swamp.’

‘Well, should the astrals be smiling upon us, perhaps we’ll encounter one this afternoon,’ Ignis slid onto the bike behind Gladio. ‘Then we’ll be able to focus only on getting home tomorrow.’

‘Fingers crossed,’ Gladio laughed, kicking the bike to life. He peeled off towards the tunnel that would take them into the wetlands that made up the Vesperpool.

* * *

The Vesperpool held a rather musty smell about it. Different mosses and vines hung in wide sheets and tangles from the mangrove trees growing in the marshy land around the rough dirt road they sped down, lending their unique odours to the air. Ignis could see Sahagin wading through the shallows under the shade of a particularly large mangrove tree and was thankful the road was far enough away from the waterfront that they could pass by without being noticed. They had enough of a battle ahead of them to get the Mandrake berries. They did not need any warm-up fights in Ignis’ rather educated opinion.

Gladio stopped the bike next to a small outcropping of rock, the perfect place to stow the bike and have it largely protected from the elements. They both slid off the bike, Ignis stowing their helmets while Gladio pulled out the tent to carry into the Myrlwood with them.

The light filtered through the treetops with a greenish hue. It was almost eerie, Ignis thought, seeing everything around them with a green tinge. He hoped he would be able to pick out the form of a Mandrake in all this green.

As the thought occurred to him, he spotted the telltale sign of tail movement. He nudged Gladio, pointing it out.

‘Is it flowering?’ he whispered, squinting through the filtered light.

‘I’ll have to get a little bit closer,’ Ignis replied under his breath. Gladio nodded and allowed Ignis to lead the way closer to the unsuspecting Mandrake.

Ignis could barely believe their astounding luck. Sunning themselves in a small clearing was a group of three Mandrakes, all in the late stages of flowering. Ignis nodded at Gladio, who set the tent down carefully, drawing his greatsword.

‘Ready when you are,’ he murmured.

‘Aim low, and try not to damage the flowers,’ Ignis readied his polearm.

‘Gotcha,’ Gladio leaped into action, ambushing the largest Mandrake and cutting it down in a few sure strikes. Ignis wished he could be afforded the option to admire Gladio’s phenomenal form, but was instead immediately engaged by one of the remaining Mandrakes. He dispatched it as cleanly as he could, confident in Gladio’s ability to handle the remaining one of his own, instead busying himself with collecting as many berries as he could from within the Mandrakes’ tiny flowers.

He was able to fill two jars with the berries, more than Ignis had hoped for. He was confident the Marshal and the Citadel’s researchers would both be satisfied with this. He turned to grin at Gladio, who began to smile back before his expression turned to one of panic.

‘Iggy, look out!’ the massive Shield leapt into action, shoving himself between Ignis and the Mushussu he hadn’t even heard coming behind him.

They were horribly ugly creatures. Massive scales covered the entirety of its body, forming the illusion of foliage around its ugly head. The tentacle-like protrusions from its face, acting as oversized fangs, reached out towards Gladio, piercing easily through the fabric of his tee, drawing blood and injecting the toxic venom Ignis had been warned about.

‘Damn,’ Ignis swore, striking out with his polearm, striking the stunned creature in the face. It clearly hadn’t been expecting its intended victims to fight back.

‘Thanks Iggy,’ Gladio grunted out, cleaving into the Mushussu’s brownish head with his blade, leaning against it once he was satisfied it was dead and there weren’t any more of them lurking around.

Ignis already had an antidote in hand, almost forcing it into Gladio’s hand. ‘Best get the poison dealt with now, we’ll clean the wounds out at camp.’

‘Mother hen,’ Gladio clucked at him, but downed the antidote under Ignis’ piercing, pointed glare. ‘Alright, let’s get to the haven, I’m not gonna say no to sitting down for a sec.’

Ignis retraced their steps to grab the tent before herding Gladio in the direction he said the haven was in, keeping a careful eye on him for signs of deeper injury than simple gashes across his chest. Gladio appeared to have noticed and barked out an easy laugh.

‘I’m not about to keel over, Iggy. Don’t worry about me,’ he put an easy arm around his shoulders as the glowing runestone of the haven came into view. ‘Takes more than a measly Mushussu to take me down.’

‘No doubt, Gladio, but indulge me in a bit of worry after you practically shoved yourself between me and danger,’ Ignis frowned. ‘Thank you, by the way. I should know better by now to be more aware of my surroundings.’

‘Not even another word about it, Iggy,’ Gladio shook his head, grabbing the tent from Ignis, despite objection, and beginning to set it up. ‘I’d do it again in a heartbeat. Besides, can’t have something that ugly messing up your pretty face now, can I?’

Ignis gaped at his best friend, completely at a loss of how to respond to that. He coughed, simply to break the silence that was horribly awkward, at least for him. ‘Perhaps I’ll try to get my hands on a myrltrout while you set up the tent and then _rest_ ,’ he nodded towards the river not even a few feet away.

‘Yes, mother hen,’ Gladio snickered. ‘Good luck.’

Ignis didn’t think Noctis would mind horribly if he borrowed one of his fishing rods from their storage in the aether. He selected one Noctis didn’t tend to favour, just in case, and attached an appropriate lure. He took this moment alone to take in a deep breath to try and calm himself. He couldn’t quite shake the residual horror still gripping at him since the moment he saw those poor excuses for fangs pierce into Gladio’s chest. His inability to keep aware of his surroundings could have easily cost him his best friend, the person he loved more than anything in the world. He would never be able to live with himself if that had happened.

The myrltrout appeared to be feeling particularly compliant today. It did not take him long at all to hook one and reel it in. He chuckled to himself at how simultaneously jealous and proud Noctis would be to see him before stowing the rod and returning to the camp, pleased to see Gladio sitting in his camp chair by the new fire. Ignis hung the fish on the hook Gladio had left out for him before going to stand in front of him, hands on his hips.

‘Let’s get a look at those cuts,’ he ordered, eyeing the torn tee Gladio still had on. ‘And afterwards we’ll see if I can’t mend that shirt a little for you.’

‘I’m fine, but if you insist,’ Gladio rolled his eyes but pulled off his shirt, frowning at Ignis’ sharp intake of breath at the sight of the two gashes across his chest. ‘C’mon Iggy, it’s ok, I’ve had way worse.’

‘That’s no matter, you’re injured,’ Ignis said quietly, fetching his first aid kit and pulling out the antiseptic and a cotton ball. ‘And this is _my_ fault.’

‘Don’t be stupid, Iggy,’ Gladio leaned forward in his chair to bring the wounds close for Ignis to inspect. ‘That coulda been either one of us caught off guard, and I know you’d do the same for me in a second. There’s no way in hell I could live with myself if anything happened to you on my watch.’

‘So you understand my worry,’ Ignis began dabbing at the worst of the two gashes with the antiseptic, watching Gladio’s face closely for signs of pain. Instead, he found that odd expression he had yet to place on the familiar features. He swallowed, knowing his cheeks were likely going pink as he felt the firm muscle of Gladio’s chest below his fingers while he cleaned.

‘Yeah,’ Gladio’s voice was quiet and oddly husky. ‘I get it.’ The expression remained on his face while Ignis finished cleaning out the wounds, applying a healing ointment before dressing them carefully. Ignis startled, however, when one of Gladio’s hands shot up without warning, holding Ignis’ hand in place over one of the bandages, closer to Gladio’s heart than Ignis would like a wound to be.

Ignis gave another hard swallow, eyes flickering between his hand trapped there and the unplaceable expression on Gladio’s face. ‘Gladio?’ he whispered, wondering if he was imagining that his friend’s face was coming closer to his.

Gladio’s lips capture Ignis’ in a warm kiss. It remained chaste for a moment, Gladio seemingly feeling out Ignis’ reaction before he deepened it, teasing at Ignis’ lips with his tongue, requesting entry. Ignis welcomed it, letting out a sigh into Gladio’s mouth, unsure if Gladio even knew a part of how much Ignis wanted this.

It was rather cliché, Ignis supposed, that the romantic tension had risen between them while he dressed Gladio’s wounds to this point, but Ignis could not spare an ounce of care for that fact. Gladio was here, alive and well but for the two cuts, and most importantly, _kissing him_.

Ignis pulled away, cursing his need for air and looked down at Gladio, whose cheeks were delightfully flushed. He smiled. ‘I will gladly accept that as thanks for tending to wounds.'

‘I can offer way better as thanks,’ Gladio said with a lick of his lips. ‘Gods you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that, but I was so damn worried you’d hate me for it.’

‘Gladio, I could never hate you,’ Ignis was honestly surprised. He supposed they were both perhaps _too_ adept in hiding their emotions. ‘I love you far too much for that.’

Gladio’s smile at that was nearly blinding. ‘I love you too, Iggy,’ he said simply, before tugging Ignis down into another kiss. Ignis settled himself into Gladio’s lap, pressing himself closer, deepening the kiss, almost not believing this was happening. It felt so different from his dreams. Every sensation washed over Ignis with the force of a wave in a storm. Gladio felt so warm, so firm, so _real_ against him. This was most definitely _not_ another dream.

Ignis pulled away, knowing he had _quite_ the sappy expression on his face. ‘You’ve no idea how happy I am right now.’

Gladio chuckled, reaching up to run a large, calloused hand through Ignis’ hair. ‘I think I might have _some_ idea. I can barely believe you didn’t shove me away.’

‘I had no idea you felt the same,’ Ignis rather enjoyed the feel of Gladio’s hand carding gently through his hair. ‘I’ve spent so long trying to hide it, I have to say, it’s nice to not need to.’

‘Gods, you’ve no idea,’ Gladio kissed his nose.

Ignis kissed him again, taking a few moments to truly revel in it before he reluctantly pulled away. ‘I suppose I should get started on supper. That trout is not about to clean itself.’

‘I’ll take care of that, you can prep the other stuff,’ Gladio stood up with him. ‘The faster we eat, the faster I can get back to kissing you.’

Ignis, frankly, agreed. He got started on the rice he knew would pair wonderfully with the fish, pouring it into a pot of water and hanging it over the fire to boil. He watched Gladio clean out the fish while he sprinkled the proper herbs into the pot, smiling to himself. Gladio moved so surely with a knife. He supposed many of his sword techniques could be adapted, not to mention his extensive survival training. Whatever the reason, there was something so attractive to him about they way he scaled and gutted the fish. His stomach did a flip-flop when Gladio looked up and blew a kiss in his direction. The following grin had Ignis’ heart practically singing.

Gladio presented him with the cleaned and filleted fish, and Ignis put them in the pan he had pre-heating over the fire, expertly seasoning it. Gladio ducked over to the stream to clean his hands, startling Ignis when he returned, throwing his arms around Ignis from behind and burrowing his lips in the side of his throat.

‘No dessert before supper,’ Ignis tutted playfully. He flipped the fish, seasoning the other side and stirred the rice.

‘Can’t help it,’ Gladio murmured into his skin. ‘Spent so long holding back, now I can’t keep my hands off of ya.’

‘I can certainly understand that,’ Ignis plated their dinner. ‘Best eat while it’s hot.’

‘You’re hotter,’ Gladio seemed reluctant to release him, but eventually did, accepting his plate. ‘Smells delicious, though.’

‘Indeed,’ Ignis led the way back to their chairs, sinking into his, not realising just how tiring dispatching those beasts had been until he was finally sitting. ‘Myrltrout is always delightful, but this fresh one has cooked so nicely.’

‘It’s amazing, Iggy,’ Gladio was practically shovelling his food into his mouth. ‘Noct’s gonna be so damn proud of you catching this yourself, you know.’

‘If he’s not too busy being horrifically jealous of my fishing in such an exotic locale,’ Ignis laughed.

‘He’ll get over it,’ Gladio finished up his meal in record time. ‘Take your time, Iggy. I’ll clean up.’

‘Thank you, Gladio,’ Ignis admired the view as Gladio bent over the stream to scrub out the pot and pan. Ignis’ mind was made up – he would _definitely_ be exploring every inch of that beautiful body. He finished up his food, perhaps rather more quickly than he usually would, and joined Gladio by the water to wash off the plate.

They put everything away and Ignis pulled something from his cooking stores and held it up to Gladio, who leaned in to read the label.

‘Coconut oil?’

‘Did you know that, aside from being a delightful cooking fat, coconut oil enjoys a rather different use outside of the kitchen?’ Ignis smiled mischievously.

‘Oh yeah? As what?’ Gladio tilted his head, curious.

‘Lubricant,’ Ignis purred, smiling when Gladio gulped. ‘I do hope I’m not being too forward or getting ahead of myself.’

He was cut off from further talk by Gladio tugging him into his arms and crushing their lips together. Ignis nearly dropped the bottle of oil in surprise, but recovered quickly enough, wrapping his arms around Gladio’s neck and pulling himself closer.

‘To the tent?’ Gladio asked in a low murmur, pulling away just enough to speak, his lips still ghosting against Ignis’.

‘Indeed,’ Ignis released his hold on Gladio’s neck to instead hook two fingers into Gladio’s belt loops, tugging him towards the tent.

To say Ignis was impatient with the buttons on his shirt was an understatement. He briefly considered simply ripping through them and simply re-attaching them later, but Gladio’s sure and steady fingers came to his aid.

‘I’ve dreamed about this for so long,’ Gladio murmured, slipping the shirt off if Ignis’ shoulders and dipping to press a messy kiss to an alabaster shoulder.

Ignis sighed, pulling Gladio closer, chuckling when the motion threw them off balance and they tumbled down onto one of the sleeping bags. ‘You have no idea how much I’ve dreamed of you, Gladio.’

‘You’ll have to fill me in,’ Gladio grinned against his skin. ‘I know I’m about to walk you through a recurring dream of mine.’

Ignis leaned into Gladio’s touch as his hands slid down his body. ‘Mm, I can hardly wait.’

* * *

The ride back to Insomnia was far more enjoyable than the ride out had been. Not only were the nights filled with tenderness, and dare Ignis say romance, but the ride itself was more comfortable. Leaning his head gently against Gladio’s back was a far more enjoyable way to enjoy the countryside than in doing his best to ignore the spectacular form in front of him. He didn’t even care that the guards stared at them as they sped past the checkpoint back into the Citadel’s parking garage. They could gossip all they wanted – they would never know the half of what was really going on.

The researchers had seemed quite impressed with the number of berries they had been able to return to them. Ignis was honestly just pleased to know they were so hopeful that this would be the breakthrough they needed in order to cure the virulent illness passing through the rural areas of their kingdom. It was also just nice to be home, and out of the marshy terrain Ignis could still smell lingering on his clothes.

Cor and Clarus were waiting in the Marshal’s office to greet them. Both looked quite pleased to see them back so soon.

‘Welcome home son,’ Clarus smiled, his eyes filled with pride. ‘I hear the trip was a successful one?’

‘I hope that’s enough berries to at least get a good start,’ Gladio nodded. ‘I’m not looking forward to going back there any time soon.’

Clarus chuckled and made his way to the door, clapping his son’s shoulder on the way. ‘You’ve done well. And you Ignis,’ Glarus surprised Ignis by pulling him into a warm hug. ‘Thanks for keeping my son safe.’

‘Always,’ Ignis smiled.

‘You’ve got no idea, dad,’ Gladio laughed. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll show you and Iris my fancy new scars when I get home.’

Clarus rolled his eyes. ‘I’m sure it would be too much to ask for you to be _careful_ instead?’

‘I’ll have to take the blame on this particular occasion,’ Ignis grimaced. ‘It was my inattention that caused Gladio injury.’

‘Don’t be stupid, Iggy, you’d do it for me in a heartbeat,’ Gladio threw an easy arm around Ignis’ shoulders and squeezed. ‘And you had my back and patched me up real good anyways.’

‘I thank the gods you’ve found Ignis every day,’ Clarus chuckled. ‘I’ll see you later, son.’

He snapped the door shut behind him, leaving a silence very characteristic of Cor. The smile on his face, however, was wry, which was more unlike him.

‘I guess I should tell you two, the gossip’s been getting really bad since you two left,’ Cor rolled his eyes. ‘You know I don’t doubt your ability to work professionally together at all – clearly I sent you two off to the Vesperpool without a chaperone,’ Ignis could see the shadow of teasing in Cor’s eyes and suppressed a groan. So the rumours had finally reached the Marshal.

‘You’d think they’d have better things to whisper to each other about than our sex lives,’ Gladio rolled his eyes.

‘Actually, rumour has it now that you’ve eloped and that’s where you’ve been,’ Cor actually let out a chuckle. ‘Which, hurtful, really. I hope you _will_ invite me to the wedding one day.’

‘You’re getting a front row seat, since you sending us off together actually got us together,’ Gladio smiled, pulling Ignis closer to his side.

Cor’s brows knitted together. ‘Well, that’s a surprise. I guess I _shouldn’t_ put all that much store into the rumours then.’

‘I might have changed my mind about them, actually,’ Ignis told them thoughtfully. ‘At first, I’d been under the impression the guards were never right about anything, but now I’m wondering if perhaps they don’t see a bit more than we give them credit for.’

‘Well, that remains to be seen,’ Cor shrugged and walked over to the door, opening it for them. ‘All I know is you two should get out of here – otherwise we’ll be giving them more non-existent reprimands to talk about.’

Laughing, Gladio led Ignis out into the training hall, ignoring the confused looks of the few guards who _should_ have been training, rather than looking for gossip fodder. Gladio dropped his arm, leaning in to whisper into Ignis’ ear. ‘Hate to give them more fodder.’

Ignis rolled his eyes, reaching up for the lapels of Gladio’s jacket, pulling his face close. ‘I say, let’s give them something to talk about.’

Gladio laughed, closing the gap, kissing him in full view of the guards no doubt staring at them. He pulled away and turned to grin at the closest recruit, the one Ignis recognised from spreading the last rumour he’d overheard. Gladio winked. ‘Add that one to the rumour mill.’

Laughing, Ignis took Gladio’s hand and pulled, hoping to bring Gladio home and really start giving those rumours some weight to them.


End file.
